Article suspending rack



A ril 2, 1935. E. w. SCHWENDER 1,996,552

ARTICLE SUSPENDING RACK Filed on. 1, 1954 Patented Apr. 2, 1935 UNITED STATES ARTICLE SUSPENDING BACK Edward William Schwender, Louisville, Ky., as-

signor to The Mengel Company, Louisville, Ky.,

a corporation of New Application October 1,

8 Claims.

This invention pertains to article hangers, and more particularly to those of the knock-down type.

The structure is designed primarily, although not so limited, for use by travelers, and particularly ladies, who frequently desire to wash out various articles of apparel, such as gloves, stockings, handkerchiefs, and the like.

The garment holder in the various forms shown 0 and hereinafter described in detail, enables one to readily assemble the parts, and to position the suspending element in such relation to the body of the hanger that the sustaining hook carried by the upper portionof the suspending element may be passed over any accessible and convenient member, such for instance, as the shank of a door knob, or other knob, a towel rack, bath tub faucet, a drawer when slightly pulled out, and various other elements.

The structure moreover, is such that the sustaining hook may be positioned with reference to the hanger body so that said hook will stand at substantially right angles to the member over which it is temporarily passed, as for instance, the edge of a drawer or towel rack bar; or in substantial parallelism to the inner edge of the hanger body, as when the hook is passed over a protruding object, such as a door knob shank or the like.

This facility of adjustment of the elements has a further advantage, in that it serves to bring that edge of the hanger body which stands adjacent the upwardly extending body portion of the suspending element (and which edge is preferably straight), into contact with the door, wall, or the body of the piece of furniture, as the case may be, and thus maintain the body of the rack and the article-holding elements carried thereby, in a substantially horizontal, as well as stable position. 1

The invention, in the broader aspect of the same, is subject to various modifications, several of which are shown in the annexed drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view, with a portion of the body shown in section, illustrative of one form or embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2, a similar view, as seen from the rear edge of the body, with the suspending member so positioned with reference thereto that the sustaining hook stands at an angle of 90 to that shown in Fig. 1, the article suspending members being omitted;

Fig. 3, a perspective view showing the sustaining Jersey 1934, Serial No. 746,428

hook as passed over the upper edge of a drawer or the like, the hook being positioned with reference to the main body of the holder, as shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4, a perspective view showing a slightly 5 modified form of attachment of the suspending member to the body member; and Fig. 5, a perspective view of the hanger with the body portion broken away in part, the article suspending elements removed therefrom, and the sustaining hook lying in substantially the same plane as the inner or rear edge of the body element, the view showing a further modified form.

Referring first to Figs. 1 to 3, both inclusive, Ill denotes the body portion of the hanger, preferably formed of wood and semi-circular in outline, thereby providing an upright fiat face as H, hereinafter referred to as the inner or rear face of the body, and a curved face, in which latter is formed a series of sockets or openings l2 (Fig. 1), to receive removable pins or bars l3. These members l3 form the sustaining elements over which the article to be dried is placed, and if desired, hooks as M (Fig. 1) may be placed in the outer curved edge of the body element Ill. Naturally, the rods, if they are formed of wood, will be made smooth in order to prevent the fibers thereof from catching on articles suspended therefrom.

As will be seen upon reference to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the body member ID has formed therein a socket or opening l5, spaced inwardly from the edge thereof and, likewise, has two channels I B and I1 formed in the rear face I l and extending transversely thereof in parallelism. These channels l6 and H are equally spaced from the socket or opening l5 and are designed to receive the upstanding body portion l8 of the suspending member, which is produced from wire bent to form.

At its lower end, the wire is curved and fashioned into an upstanding finger l9 which is somewhat shorter than the vertical portion l8.

At its upper end, the wire is formed into a somewhat enlarged hook, as 20, which is adapted to be passed over a door or other knob, as 2 I, (Fig. 1) or over the side of a drawer or other element, as indicated at 22 in Fig. 3.

The opening or socket I5 is designed to receive the lower upstanding end IQ of the suspending element, and the body l8 thereof may be passed into either one or the other opening I6 or I! as the finger I9 is introduced or drawn up into the socket l5. In other words, grooves or channels l6 and "lie in the arc of a circle with its center incommon with that of the socket or opening l5. In this manner, the finger I 9 may be readily secured to the body member I 0 and the hook brought into substantial alignment with the rear or inner face II, or at right angles thereto, by merely disengaging the parts and moving the finger upwardly into the opening I5 with the body l8 in one or another of the slots.

In Fig. 4, a slight modification is shown, which, however, involves the same general mechanical principle as that disclosed in the structure above described.

The body of the hanger, in this instance, is denoted by lll' and the vertical inner or rear face by II. In the latter, there are formed two vertically disposed and parallel channels 24 and 25,

the channel 24 being somewhat deeper than the channel 25. A socket 25 is located inwardly of the groove 25 and in a plane passing through thebottom of the channel 24 and the socket 26, said plane being parallel or substantially so to the face H The suspending hook of the sustaining member is denoted by 20 and lies in the same plane with the upstanding body portion l8 and the upwardly projecting arm or finger I9 In other words, the suspending hook 20 does not lie in a plane which is angular to that of the body member l8 and the locking or upstanding finger I 9, as in the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 3.

With the parts in the position shown in Fig. 4, the hook 2|) stands parallel or in substantially the same plane with the face H Upon pushing the suspending member down and disengaging the finger, the suspending member may be turned counter-clockwise, the body HP brought into line with the groove 25, the finger I9 into line with the opening 26, and the parts again drawn together so that the body lies within the groove 25 and the finger l9 is seated in the socket.

In Fig. 5, a further modification is shown. Here instead of employing two slots in the rear face, as in the prior constructions, a single slot as 30 is formed mid-length of the body member I 0 and two openings or sockets 3| and 32 are formed in the body extending from the under face upwardly, either in part or wholly through the body as the case may be. Said openings or sockets 3| and 32 are symmetrically positioned, i. e., equally spaced inwardly on a right line from the inner face II of the block I0 and likewise so spaced from the groove or channel 30. In other words, the openings 3| and 32 are separated a distance of from each other, with the center of the groove or channel 30 considered as a center.

The sustaining element or member when employed in conjunction with this form of body block and openings and channel, is the same as that shown in Figs. 1 to 3.

In the position shown in Fig. 5, the suspending hook 20 stands in a plane parallel to the rear face H Upon disengagement of the parts, by moving the sustaining member downwardly with reference to the body It", the upstanding finger I9 will be disengaged from the opening 3| whereupon the hook may be rotated so as to bring the finger into alignment with the socket or opening 32 and a relative engaging movement had between the member IS and the body element l0". thus locking the hook and thebody together, with the sustaining hook 20* standing at right angles to the inner face of the body member lll As will be readily appreciated, one of the openings, as 3|, 32, (Fig. 5), may alone be utilized eeann with the suspending member, if the body "I be turned upside-down as specified below. If, for instance, the socket or opening 32 were omitted, and the opening 3| which extends entirely through the body alone utilized, the suspending element, when the hook I 9' is inserted in said opening, would still bear the same relationship to the body Ill as shown in Fig. 5, with the suspending member 20 parallel or in line with the face I l If it be desired to have this member 20 stand at right angles to the face, the parts could be disengaged from the position above described and the body [0 rotated through an arc of in a plane parallel with the rear face H, and inserting the member l9 in the then lower portion of the opening 3|.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the structure may be readily assembled, and as readily disassembled; the suspending bars I3, the suspending element and the body block all made up into a single bundle, which will occupy but little space.

Moreover, the parts may be readily assembled and held in position without any special fastening means, this by reason of the fact that the sockets into which the suspending rods pass may be tapered inwardly, or the ends of the rods may be made tapered to effect a tight fit.

So, also, the diameter of the wire from which the. suspending element is formed will be such as to make a relative close and tight fit with the various slots and openings with which it coop crates.

It is preferred to have the openings pass entirely through the body of the block, so that it is immaterial which side'of the body is uppermost when the rack is assembled.

The terms, socket or opening, as employed in the claims, are intended to be used as equivalents, unless the structure set forth precludes such equivalency.

What is claimed is:

1. An article supporting rack comprising in combination a body element; an adjustable suspending hook therefor extending above the upper surface of the body in all adjusted positions of the hook with reference to said body; and means carried by said suspending hook and coacting with openings formed in said body element for adjusting and interlocking the suspending hook in different relative positions upon axial rotative movement of the hook with reference to the body, whereby the hanger is adapted to be suspended from various elements projecting from or standing in substantial parallelism to a member or wall to which they are attached. I

2. An article suspending rack as set forth in claim 1, wherein at least one of the openings in the body element has the form of a groove produced in one edge of the body element, said groove extending from the upper to the lower face of said body.

3. An article suspending rack comprising in combination a body element having two open grooves or channels formed in one edge thereof, said grooves lying in parallelism and extending from the upper to the lower face of said body, and said body likewise having a socket formed inwardly of the edge aforesaid and equally spaced with reference to said grooves; and a suspending member produced from wire bent to form, the lower portion of said member being fashioned into 'an upstanding finger lying parallel to a body portion with a suspending hook extending from finger may be passed into the socket and the body portion seated within one or the other of the grooves and the position of the suspending hook, with reference to the body, thereby changed.

4. An article suspending rack, comprising in combination a body element having at least one vertically disposed face having a groove extending transversely thereof, and a plurality of sockets formed in said body element equidistantly spaced from said groove and the vertically disposed face of the body; and a suspending member for said body, said member being formed of wire and having at its lower end an upstanding finger, said finger being spaced from the adjacent body portion of the wire a distance equal to that obtaining between the bottom of the groove and,

either one of said sockets, said wire at its upper end being fashioned into a suspending element.

5. A structure as set forth in claim 4, wherein the suspending element lies in a plane substantially 45 to a plane passing through the finger and the body portion of the wire adjacent to said finger.

6. An article suspending rack, comprising in combination a body elementhaving a groove formed in one edge thereof, said groove extending from the upper to the lower face of said body, and said body havingtwosocketsformed adjacent said groove, the sockets being equally spaced inwardly from the edge aforesaid and likewise spaced at an angle of with reference to each other; and a suspending element for the rack, said element being formed from wire and bent to form and having at its lower end an upstanding finger lying parallel tothe body of the suspending element and spaced therefrom a distance equal to the radial distance of the sockets from the groove aforesaid and adapted to enter one or another of said sockets, and a hook at the upper end of the body member, said hook lying in a plane standing at an angle of approximately 45 to a plane passing through the finger andthe body of the suspending element which lies within the groove,

whereby the suspending element may be so pcsitioned with reference to the body, that the hook at the upper end thereof stands in substantial parallelism with the edge in which the groove aforesaid is formed, or at right angles thereto.

7. An article suspending rack, comprising in combination a body element having a vertically disposed fiat face, and having a pair of parallel transversely extending grooves or channels formed therein, one shallow with reference to the other; a vertically disposed socket formed in said body, said socket being formed inwardly of the fiat face aforesaid at a distance equal to the depth of the deep groove or channel and in aplane extending through the bottom of the shallow channel and lying parallel to the adjacent side wall of the deeper groove or channel; and a suspending. element for said body, said element being formed from a single piece of wire having at its lower end a hook-shaped element embodying an upstanding finger which lies parallel to the adjacent body portion of the wire, the distance between said body portion and the finger being the same as that existing between the socket and the adjacent portion of the deep groove or channel and also between the socket and the shallow groove, and said suspending element likewise having its upper end formed into suspending means.

8. An article suspending rack, comprising in combination a body element having a vertically disposed flat face, and having a pair of parallel transversely extending grooves formed therein, one of said grooves being deeper than the other and also having a socket formed therein equidistantly spaced from the bottoms of saidgrooves; a suspending element for said body, said element being formed of wire and having at its lower end an upstanding finger which lies parallel to the adjacent body portion of the wire and at a distance therefrom equal to the distance of the socket from the base of the respective grooves; and means formed upon the upper end of the wire for suspending the rack in place.

EDWARD WILLIAM SCHWENDER. 

